A Literary Vote

Never mind whether you can judge a book by its cover, my question today is; can you judge a politician by his reading material?

This article from the Guardian is a lighthearted look at the reading preferences of the three UK party leaders, and concludes that from a book-lover’s point of view, Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg wins hands-down.

I wouldn’t normally get political on my blog but as it is book-related, today Novel Insights can be my own little Speaker’s Corner.

What about your literary tastes? Perhaps you’re more of a literary Gordon Brown (who cited Tennyson and Wordsworth as favourites) or a David Cameron (who enjoys Robert Graves, Goodbye to All That and whose desert island read would be Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s River Cottage Cookbook).

Whoever you want to win, if you’re in the UK and eligible – don’t forget to excercise your right to vote!

12 responses to “A Literary Vote”

I’m not in the UK, but my boyfriend lives in Wales, so I get all the news about polls, election etc. I’m going to show the Guardian article to him. I bet he’s going to like Nick Clegg even more after that. And I don’t mind a little politics on your blog – voting is important! 🙂

Hahaha, you know what I thought exactly the same thing… what IS the point of a cookery book on a desert island except to torture yourself?!

I’m glad you like the post. I don’t dare try too much to sway people as I think as long as a vote is thoughtful it’s valid 🙂

Having said that, I think it’s pretty clear where my sentiments lie and I’m a ‘vote with your heart’ girl not persuaded by scare stories of what a hung parliament might mean especially as two big financial companies have said it doesn’t worry them. Of course for me the bookish preferences are really more of a confirmation of what I already felt but it’s a fun way to get insight into what people think about!

Well I love JM Coetzee (yes, based on only one book!) and Scrabble so I like the sound of this Clegg bloke! I’ve never been fond of Tennyson or Wordsworth, I must say. (And maybe I just like the idea of being “smart, forward-thinking, culturally aware and interesting”!!)

They’ve been talking about your election on CBC radio lately. Everyone seems to want to get rid of Brown. I don’t know the issues but I’m sure it’s time for a change?